Magician with all the tricks: Willis hails Jimmy and backs him to go past Botham

It was only two months ago that Bob Willis made a 40-mile journey to Lord’s from a funeral he had just attended to congratulate Jimmy Anderson on joining English cricket’s very exclusive 300 Club.

Now the former England fast bowler believes the great ground may be the place where more plaudits become due — on this occasion for overtaking him on the list of the all-time Test match wicket-takers.

'Let’s hope so,' said Willis. 'I’ll be delighted to see him get past me very soon and I would expect him to get past Beefy before he has played a hundred Tests.’

Match winner: Anderson took 10 wickets in the first Ashes Test, including the decisive scalp

England's finest: Anderson...

Willis...

and Botham

By becoming so dependably destructive, Anderson put himself among the most select company. Having surpassed Fred Trueman’s 307 victims, the 30-year-old Lancastrian is now just eight behind Willis’s total of 325, with Ian Botham’s 383 coming quickly into view.

Willis, known for his honesty in analysing the game and its players, has become a huge admirer of the man who is about to push him down the list of England’s most prolific bowlers in the five-day game.

‘When he first came on the scene, virtually straight out of school, he was talked about as just being very quick, and he has now become the best swing bowler in the world,’ said Willis. ‘He has done it by becoming a magician with the old ball, it is very impressive.

‘He is up there with Wasim Akram and
Waqar Younis in terms of reverse swing. I would put him half a rung
behind Glenn McGrath at his peak with his consistency.’

It is a far cry from Anderson’s early days travelling with England when, usually as a non-playing member of the squad, he was almost a figure of pity, spending lunch in the middle with some cones and a stump under the eye of then bowling coach Troy Cooley.

Ten years on it is not just bowling greats like Willis who can attest to his quality.

Sachin Tendulkar has been his most common Test wicket (taken nine times), followed by Michael Clarke and Jacques Kallis, seven times each.

Anderson lags well behind Willis and Botham in Ashes wickets — 51 to their 128 and 148 respectively — but that is because England play other countries so regularly now. Anderson has more victims from South Africa and India, 57 against each.

His Test bowling average is not as good, but the balance between bat and ball has changed in the past 25 years.

The mistake should not be made, either, that Anderson has benefited from playing against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, as only 20 of his 317 wickets have come against them.

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It is now 30 years since the zenith of Willis and Botham’s achievements, and the former of those believes that 30 years from now people will be reflecting on what the softly spoken man from Burnley did in his career.

‘There is no doubt he will be looked back on as one of the great England bowlers, although I don’t think you can make too many comparisons, certainly not with Beefy and me,’ said Willis.

‘Beefy was a brilliant outswing bowler at high pace with the new ball who was prepared to go for more runs. I just ran in and bowled as fast as I could and if it swung or hit the seam then that was a bonus.

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‘With Jimmy he hides the shine on the ball as he’s running in so the batsman doesn’t know which way the ball is going to swing. His wrist position is fantastic. With the reverse swing, he moves it so late that the batsman cannot change his shot.’ Willis ends with a note of caution about how much

Anderson is being bowled: ‘Despite Alastair Cook’s denials he does rely on him hugely. You don’t bowl someone for 13 straight overs if that is not the case.

‘There is a case for resting him from most of the one-day series and keeping him back for the World Cup and making sure he is right for the 2015 Ashes. He needs to be managed carefully because he has become so important.’

Legends of the game: Willis and Botham both enjoyed highly successful careers playing for England